What are the dental implications when you are pregnant?

Thinking about having a baby or are currently pregnant? Do you know that your oral health has a very significant influence on your pregnancy? Simply put, ” Healthy Mouth, Healthy Mom, Healthy Baby”. Remember, what you eat goes through your mouth, if you have an unhealthy mouth with either tooth decay, periodontal disease or associated primary or secondary diseases like fungal diseases, you are ingesting the toxins and disease breakdown products with your food. Obviously, these metabolites will make you sicker and harm or even terminate your pregnancy. Consequently, it is recommended that before one attempts to become pregnant one have a comprehensive oral exam and treat any existing disease process. If one has become pregnant then this recommendation is delayed for the 1st trimester unless an emergency situation is encountered.

Pregnancy is a special time in a your life; both psychologically as well as physiologically. You are entering a new stage of life and the responsibilities associated with it while at the same time your body is creating as new life and adapting physiologically so as to give birth to it. The problem, however, is lack of preparation due to the assumption that it is a “natural process”. This fundamentally true in that the vast majority of pregnancies are problem free but the majority of “problems” are preventable particularly those associated with oral hygiene. The adage ” an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure ” applies here. Knowledge of potential complications associated with poor oral hygiene as well as responsible treatment and/or maintenance visits are as important as your medical examinations during the pregnancy.

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